Job 7
New King James Version
Job: My Suffering Is Comfortless
7 “Is there not (A)a time of hard service for man on earth?
Are not his days also like the days of a hired man?
2 Like a servant who [a]earnestly desires the shade,
And like a hired man who eagerly looks for his wages,
3 So I have been allotted (B)months of futility,
And wearisome nights have been appointed to me.
4 (C)When I lie down, I say, ‘When shall I arise,
And the night be ended?’
For I have had my fill of tossing till dawn.
5 My flesh is (D)caked with worms and dust,
My skin is cracked and breaks out afresh.
6 “My(E) days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
And are spent without hope.
7 Oh, remember that (F)my life is a breath!
My eye will never again see good.
8 (G)The eye of him who sees me will see me no more;
While your eyes are upon me, I shall no longer be.
9 As the cloud disappears and vanishes away,
So (H)he who goes down to the grave does not come up.
10 He shall never return to his house,
(I)Nor shall his place know him anymore.
11 “Therefore I will (J)not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit;
I will (K)complain in the bitterness of my soul.
12 Am I a sea, or a sea serpent,
That You set a guard over me?
13 (L)When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
My couch will ease my complaint,’
14 Then You scare me with dreams
And terrify me with visions,
15 So that my soul chooses strangling
And death rather than [b]my body.
16 (M)I loathe my life;
I would not live forever.
(N)Let me alone,
For (O)my days are but [c]a breath.
17 “What(P) is man, that You should exalt him,
That You should set Your heart on him,
18 That You should [d]visit him every morning,
And test him every moment?
19 How long?
Will You not look away from me,
And let me alone till I swallow my saliva?
20 Have I sinned?
What have I done to You, (Q)O watcher of men?
Why (R)have You set me as Your target,
So that I am a burden [e]to myself?
21 Why then do You not pardon my transgression,
And take away my iniquity?
For now I will lie down in the dust,
And You will seek me diligently,
But I will no longer be.”
Job 7
Amplified Bible
Job’s Life Seems Futile
7 “Is not man forced to labor on earth?
And are not his days like the days of a hired man?
2
“As a slave earnestly longs for the shade,
And as a hired man eagerly awaits his wages,
3
So am I allotted months of futility and suffering,
And [long] nights of trouble and misery are appointed to me.
4
“When I lie down I say,
‘When shall I arise [and the night be gone]?’
But the night continues,
And I am continually tossing until the dawning of day.
5
“My body is clothed with worms and a crust of dust;
My skin is hardened [and broken and loathsome], and [breaks out and] runs.
6
“My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle,
And are spent without hope.
7
“Remember that my life is but breath [a puff of wind, a sigh];
My eye will not see good again.
8
“The eye of him who sees me [now] will see me no more;
Your eyes will be upon me, but I will not be.
9
“As a cloud vanishes and is gone,
So he who goes down to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) does not come up.
10
“He will not return again to his house,
Nor will his place know about him anymore.
11
“Therefore I will not restrain my mouth;
I will speak in the anguish of my spirit,
I will complain in the bitterness of my soul [O Lord].
12
“Am I the sea, or the sea monster,
That You set a guard over me?
13
“When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me,
My couch will ease my complaint,’
14
Then You frighten me with dreams
And terrify me through visions,
15
So that I would choose suffocation,
Death rather than my [a]pain.
16
“I waste away and loathe my life; I will not live forever.
Let me alone, for my days are but a breath [futile and without substance].
17
“What is man that You [should] magnify him [and think him important]?
And that You are concerned about him?(A)
18
“And that You examine him every morning
And try and test him every moment?
19
“Will You never turn Your gaze away from me [it plagues me],
Nor let me alone until I swallow my spittle?
20
“If I have sinned, what [harm] have I done to You,
O Watcher of mankind?
Why have You set me as a target for You,
So that I am a burden to myself?
21
“Why then do You not pardon my transgression
And take away my sin and guilt?
For now I will lie down in the dust;
And You will seek me [diligently], but I will not be.”
Footnotes
- Job 7:15 Lit bones.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
